The Artifact
by TearsofBlack101
Summary: Set in the Marauder Era, Lily Evans struggles to keep her life a secret and her world safe.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Disclaimer: Nothing you recognize belongs to me (What else is new)

A/N- This was inspired by The Secret Agent. It's a wonderful story, and I encourage you all to read it.

One more thing- This is the third time I'm writing this, so if it seems familiar, you may have read a previous version.

EAEAEA

"Evans," James said shortly as he passed her just inside the barrier between platforms nine and ten of Kings Cross train station.

"Potter," she said quietly, but James wasn't surprised. She was always quiet when she wasn't yelling at him.

"Morning, Lils," Sirius said, swooping up behind her and throwing an arm around her shoulders.

Lily shrugged away, leaving Sirius Black and James Potter stunned. They would never get used to interacting with a girl that didn't like them.

"That girl is SO strange," James muttered before hopping onto the train. Sirius merely nodded in response while thinking deep thoughts about the available girls on the train.

It was the morning before their first day back at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for their seventh and final year. They passed a few compartments full of girls looking at them hopefully.

_Maybe one of the boys would sit with them; and maybe they'd invite Remus?_

"Yaknow," Sirius began with a twinkle in his eye, "I think Lily kinda likes me!"

"Please." James spat, "She wouldn't date you in a million years."

This sparked one of Sirius' favorite games to play: James Is Ridiculous. In his opinion, no seventh year had a good reason to be tied down to one girl- physically or mentally. In order to break James of his Lily habit, Sirius liked to see how far he could push James' heart before his head kicked in.

As they bantered, they passed Lily Evans, sitting in a compartment alone save for a large stack of papers. James couldn't resist speaking to her.

"What are you doing?" he asked loudly, startling her.

Lily smiled when she saw what was pinned to James' chest: the badge of the head boy. She would be working beside him for most of the year, having been appointed head girl. "You're Head Boy?" she asked.

James grinned, not noticing the change of subject. "No idea. Wish I could take this thing _off_ though!" he shot a pointed glare at Sirius, who shook his head somberly.

"Prefect meeting," Lily said, standing and carefully placing her papers in a bag.

"Oh yeah," James said nonsensically, "Actually, I was wondering if I could rain check that... See; Sluggy asked me to lunch, and I'm supposed to be in his compartment right now." He knew as his sentence pattered out that he had said the wrong thing. Lily knew, too.

Lily wished she were surprised. "If you don't want to go, don't." she said shortly, then strode out of the compartment to speak with the prefects.

"I'd go, mate." Sirius said soberly, "That glare could melt your face off…I'll save you a crumpet." James nodded and followed the head girl hurriedly to the prefects.

EAEAEA

"…So if you have any questions, find _me_." Lily said almost half and hour later, pointedly leaving James out. He had remained silent through her speech.

"You know what you're supposed to do." Lily said to everyone, "Go on." The prefects rose as one to go patrol the halls, and Lily sat down to try to keep going with her paperwork. It was simultaneously fascinating and exhausting.

"Evans?" James asked tentatively.

Lily would have jumped at the sound of his voice if she weren't so used to the things one ought not get used to. "Yes?"

"Would you like to sit with the Marauders?" James asked, barely allowing his hopes to rise. He'd been in love with Lily Evans since fourth year, but so far there had been nothing on her part to suggest that she even liked him as a friend.

The girl considered this; she could always do this paperwork later, and she would like to spend some time with James. She had discovered the year before that through all of their arguments and all of her disapproval, she had feelings for him. For reasons to complicated to verbalize, she could never act upon them. But innocently sitting in his compartment...she could do that.

"Sure." She said with a smile, and followed him to the self proclaimed 'Marauders' compartment'.

The Marauders consisted of James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. The first three were equally gorgeous to the female population. The last was just a mess.

There was James Potter with his unruly black hair, Quidditch tan and mischievous hazel eyes; Sirius Black with his pale skin, long, elegant could-care-less hair and electric blue eyes; Remus Lupin with his thick, dark sandy blonde hair and deep, thoughtful blue eyes.

Then there was Peter.

He was pudgy and had limp, mousy brown hair and foul beady brown eyes. He was the underdog in this group: stupid where the others were brilliant; pudgy where the others were fit. He was the one that they all needed to help, and he played that role perfectly.

"Hi," Lily said cautiously upon entrance.

"Hello, Lily," Remus said kindly. They knew each other well from their previous years of prefect duty together.

Sirius grinned, but didn't say anything. Peter waved excitedly. She was reminded of a puppy that peed out of over stimulation.

James stared at the girl in what he half-hoped was a discrete manner. Her waist long auburn hair was down for once, and her emerald green eyes shone optimistically. He took in her pale skin and almost breakable composure. But he knew that she was stronger than she let on. After all, he had asked her out every day since fifth year, and she hadn't even begun to say yes.

As much as she disliked some of the things they did, Lily really enjoyed letting herself free with the Marauders. She didn't have many friends at Hogwarts- a blessing and a curse. She enjoyed her solitude, and it certainly made her job easier. But sitting in the compartment with these silly, rambunctious boys almost made her miss the ways things used to be.

"Come on," James said kindly. The train had stopped. Lily nodded and followed him to a carriage that would carry them up to school. She stopped only a moment to pat the exquisitely frightening black threstle that pulled the craft, then stepped inside and rode up to Hogwarts.

"That is all. Would the head girl and boy please see me in my office?" Professor Dumbledore had just finished giving the Headmaster's speech, and now stood to go to his office.

James glanced at Lily who hadn't eaten nearly enough through the colossal start-of-term feast, and asked, "Shall we?" in his most sarcastically chivalrous voice.

Lily smiled and followed him in silence out the doors and all the way through Hogwarts' many staircases and corridors to Dumbledores office.

"Welcome," Dumbledore said happily; grandly. "I am very proud of you both, and know that you will make very good heads." He paused and allowed the two of them to bask in his praise momentarily.

"As you know, Lord Voldemort has been gaining power." James looked surprised, but Lily didn't bat an eye. She knew everything about him.

"I just wanted to warn you that he may attempt to take over this school." He paused again. "This is one of the easiest accesses to young wizards with dangerous, untamed powers. He may try to corrupt our students-" Lily thought she heard James mutter something that sounded a lot like 'Slytherins', "but I know that you both will do a wonderful job aiding the forces of light."

Lily nodded and understood that she was being dismissed. She turned and exited the office, barely hearing James' footsteps behind her. He trailed her the whole way to Gryffindor tower, her legs leading the way and her mind in another world.

Lily was exhausted and longed for the sleep that came instantly in the castle. She stepped up to the portrait of the fat lady in the pink dress that concealed the entrance to Gryffindor common room.

"Welcome home," the lady said kindly.

Lily smiled, "Charms," she said. She had unilaterally chosen her favorite subject as the first password of the term.

James followed her in and looked over in confusion when she headed for the girls dormitory.

"Lils?" he asked, "The Head Tower."

"Oh." Lily mumbled, "Right," She followed him over to a grand painting to the left of the fireplace. There was a knight on a white horse with his sword drawn. "Not him," Lily begged quietly. This crazed knight thought he was the greatest thing since mini marshmallows, and flaunted his 'skills' constantly.

"Nope," James answered merrily. "Sir Cadagon, please go to your own painting." The knight huffed, but left.

Behind him was a large purple throne with a tired looking king sitting in it. A golden crown lay perched upon his head haphazardly.

"Password?" he asked lazily.

James grinned, "Evening, Thomas," he said happily.

The king's eyes lit up. "James Potter?" he asked incredulously; "I haven't seen you in ages! But you're head boy! Of course, only the heads may enter- I was so glad when I heard I would be working with you this year!"

"Um…can we catch up later?" James asked coarsely. Lily looked as if she could fall asleep at any moment and he would prefer that she not reach that state in a vertical position.

The king chuckled, "Of course." His portrait swung open, and the head's tower was revealed.

The heads dormitory was opulent and grand. There was an enormous roaring fire in the dark red brick fireplace with comfortable red chairs and a dark red couch.

James wandered over to a staircase and walked up it with Lily on his tail. The short hallway at the top had two doors; on one the left and one on the right. "I think this one is for you," James said, pointing to the door with the scripted 'L' on the door.

Distracted by the notion of sleep, Lily entered silently. The room was as beautiful as she had ever seen. It had a large wooden canopy bed with white blankets and several fluffy pillows. The room had two sub rooms- a bathroom and an impressive closet. Most impressively- it had an antique desk with what seemed like an endless supply of parchment; paper; quills; ink- everything she could possibly need to complete her schoolwork. Lily's sense of curiosity was settled almost immediately, and she looked longingly at her bed before telling herself sternly: Paperwork first; Sleep after.

Lily forced her eyes to remain open. She settled into her desk and pulled out the papers she had worked on before James had interrupted her.

Her biggest secret and deepest preoccupation was British Intelligence; her place of employment and reason for being. The primarily muggle organization began employing a handful of wizards many years ago as an effort to connect itself to the Ministry of Magic and had only recently learned how to use them. Lily had entered the organization around her fifth year at Hogwarts, after certain events had rendered Voldemort too much a part of her life to ignore. She dedicated her life to British Intelligence. She did anything asked of her, be it attending a Death Eater party as a spy, patrolling the Minister's home as a security guard, or toiling over paperwork like an under qualified muggle secretary. Clearly, this kind of task was not her favorite. She loved the action of almost being killed. She thrived under the pressure of carrying a muggle handgun and a wand. She reveled in the responsibility that others at her school could hardly imagine. She was part of the movement against Voldemort and she valued that responsibility more than most knew.

When her paperwork was completed and the death toll for the week was calculated, she whistled low, then high out her window. Moments later, her ebony owl was in her room. He made a habit of perching on the roof near her. She needed Damien close for jobs like tonight where articles needed to remain secret.

He was bred for strength and speed, so was rather large and could handle any duties she required of him. Lily shrunk her papers and slipped them into the small satchel that was consistently attached to his leg.

"You be sure to get these in quickly." Lily instructed. The owl hooted indignantly, as if his delivering anything leisurely was insulting. "Don't get lost," she whispered.

The owl hooted again then flew out the window to British Intelligence. Lily sighed and walked up the stairs to her room to collapse for a few hours.

She woke early to find Damien still absent. Her concern outweighed her exhaustion. Her morning routine was distracted and nervous. She paced around the heads common room anxiously. What was keeping him? James came down the stairs looking cheerful.

Lily silently cursed him in jealousy of his good night's sleep.

"Morning, Lils," he sang.

"Hi, James," she replied shortly.

James smiled at her, undeterred. "Did you sleep at all?" he asked.

"Yep."

"…Why not?" he asked gently.

Lily shook her head slightly, "Nervous about going back to school," she lied. James nodded wisely, as if he understood. Lily had long since moved on to more dangerous things to be nervous about. Damien soared back into the room and landed on Lilys shoulder.

"It's about bloody time." She snapped. She glanced at James cautiously, "Safe trip?" she asked Damien carefully. The owl hooted in soft reply. She nodded and walked towards the Great Hall for breakfast. Lily ate breakfast alone save for Damien who stayed to beg for food, then she walked to the dungeons for potions.

"You are my NEWT class." Professor Slughorn said grandly. "Obviously, I'm quite pleased that you are all taking my class. A few in particular…have abilities beyond my expectations." He paused for a moment and looked pointedly at the Lily, Marauders, then at Severus Snape "All that I request is your effort." He seemed to find that very funny and laughed at himself while the class eyed him warily. "Page 27. You have an hour and twenty minutes. You will finish early." Then he sat at his desk and spent the rest of the period doodling frogs.

James sidled up to Lily on the way to the ingredients cupboard. "Want to work at our table?" he asked concernedly, "You're dangerously close to Snivellus."

Snivellus was a foul nickname for Severus, which had been created in fourth year. Ordinarily, Lily disapproved of bullies, but in Severus' instance, it was the bully himself playing the victim against other bullies. Lily had stuck up for him in every way until a day in fifth year when he really stepped over the edge in rudeness around their OWL examinations. She was out of empathy and certainly out of patience to give him.

"Sure," she said gratefully.

"Morning, Lily." Remus looked concerned. He was especially good at reading the exhaustion in other's eyes, having seen it in his own for so many years. Remus was a werewolf- a terrible condition following the cycle of the moon. Lily made it a point to place herself in the Forbidden Forest where he transformed every full moon to observe and watch over him. She was an animagus (a wizard who can transform into a particular animal) and could not be permanently hurt by him while in her animal form.

"Alright. We… are… done!" James exclaimed happily, chucking the last few ingredients into the cauldron.

"Really?" Lily asked, checking the potion in the cauldron to be sure. It certainly looked complete.

"Yup," James said, "It's got to brew for an hour."

"Fantastic." Lily muttered. If only she could go back to sleep! Having to wait for an hour in the dungeon was practically torture for someone who thrived outside.

Remus smiled, taking her sentiment for genuine. "What did you do this summer?" he asked everyone.

"I Stayed with the Potters. It was pretty much perfect." Sirius said happily, "Mum's an excellent cook, and Dad taught me so much!" Lily grinned at how happy he was with James' family. He wasn't officially adopted, but he _was_ officially disowned by his blood-relatives as of last year.

"I went to France." Remus offered. "It was really cool. The Louvre was so amazing!"

Lily smiled. She loved Paris. She had been stationed at the Louvre a few times over the summer to protect a painting that supposedly held ancient dark arts secrets. She thought it was baloney, but certainly wouldn't pass up the opportunity to peruse the Louvre for twenty pounds an hour!

"I stayed at home." James said dejectedly, "It was boring!" Sirius rolled his eyes, exasperated that James couldn't appreciate what he had. There was a short pause where the boys stared at Lily expectantly. She didn't say anything.

"What did _you_ do, Lily?" Remus prodded helpfully.

'_I saved the world' _was what she longed to say. "I stayed at home, too." she answered out loud.

Remus smiled encouragingly. "Oh? How was that?"

"Great, actually. My family was really happy to see me." Lily lied.

They made awkward small talk throughout the lesson, and left to charms the instant that the professor let them.

Eventually, the school day was over. Lily skipped dinner and nearly floated to her bed. She collapsed and found instant sleep.

Damien felt responsible for her, and always perched awake on her headboard while she slept, to keep watch. She hadn't been asleep for more than half an hour when he hooted loudly to alert her.

Lilys eyes snapped open.

"Oh. Hi, James." she said sleepily, her voice slipping into confusion. "Thanks, Damien," she said, while gently stroking his feathers.

"Hi, Lily. I'm sorry. I didn't know you were sleeping." He stepped over to her bed and sat down on the edge.

Lily shrugged, "That's all right." Secretly, she wished he would go away.

"I waited for you at lunch and dinner, but you didn't show up." He complained.

"What did you need?" Lily asked.

"I was just worried about you. I'm glad you're getting some rest." James said, sounding pleased.

James wondered if it would be okay to kiss her goodnight, but her bird was watching which made him feel odd about it. He really cared about her so much he had a difficult time expressing it. It was too bad that she didn't feel the same way.

"I'll um see you tomorrow." He said quietly. Lily nodded blearily and sank back into her pillows.

Damien glared at James until the door was shut. This was why he was there; to remind Lily of what was important.

A/N- I very much prefer this version of this chapter. Hope I keep the motivation to continue revamping the story.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Chapter 2**

1Disclaimer- None of this is mine.

Lily tried and tried but could not find sleep for what seemed to her a very long time. In what seemed to be the quintessential nap dilemma, she was just about asleep when Damien hooted in her ear. Lily's eyes snapped open. It was light out. How irritating. There, perched on her windowsill was an inconspicuous brown owl. It was almost too ordinary and it carried no message. That could only mean one thing: she was needed.

Lily took a back passageway that had served her well over the years to sneak out of the castle and into the forbidden forest. There, she took a breath and transformed into a lion.

She had to run all of the way off of Hogwarts grounds to Apparate- a much easier feat with four legs. She made it through the forbidden forest at top speed, then transformed into a human and Apparated- all in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, Lily was outside of a rather shady building that housed British Intelligence. It was an interesting enough building from the inside, but outside you would never differentiate between it and an abandoned office space. It had quite the set of protections placed upon it: Muggles could enter and exit freely, but only wizards who had reached a certain level of security clearance could enter without a series of hexes igniting. Although Lily had about as much clearance as an agent could, she always got nervous entering the building- that petrificus totalus that hit first was intense.

Once in the building, Lily walked past the foyer- the grungy desks and grungier office assistance, the awful modern art, the tacky chandelier hanging awkwardly off center—down a hallway lined with an eclectic mixture of Magical and Muggle artwork, and all the way down to the furthest door on the left. Past that door was the magical division of this Muggle building. She tapped the door handle with her wand and, as she always did, accompanied it with a knock. The door slowly creaked open, revealing a man so large he seemed not to fit into the room.

"Good evening, Evans." the man said cordially. "Have a nice first day back?"

Lily smiled. "Yes, sir. Although it would have been even better if I could get an entire night's sleep." Her quip went unnoticed, as her partner had arrived.

"Evening," the man said fondly. It was Derek Hamilton, her best friend since forever.

"All right." The large man said. "The 'Death Eaters' are expecting you at a gathering tonight as you've been present at the last three. I'm sorry for the short notice, but" he didn't bother to finish his statement. It wasn't easy collecting information from an insider. Particularly when the agents weren't allowed to know who he was.

Derek's gray eyes were lit up excitedly, "Excellent," he said optimistically. Like Lily, he lived for adventure. Unfortunately, he didn't have his best friend's brains and occasionally got himself into the kind of trouble only Lily could help him out of.

"I'm glad you're excited." Emerson said curtly. Just as they were turning away, he added "That took you fifteen minutes. Unacceptable. Figure something out."

"But sir," Lily protested. Unable to gather the words to explain to a Muggle about the magical enchantments prohibiting exactly what he was asking, she gaped.

"You'll find that help comes to those who ask." Emerson said mysteriously, then he left, leaving a very confused Derek and Lily behind. They simultaneously lifted the sleeves of their left arms and pulled out their wands. Of course, they did not have true Dark Marks. They did not receive the call of the master, and the marks were often invisible to others. But for tonight, and all others where proof of allegiance was required, they would suffice. Lily's gaze blackened over the trademark of evil, briefly remembering that terrible night when everything she loved had come crashing down around her.

Her thoughts were broken soon by a short, skinny man with a work apron tied around his waist who entered the room in a tizzy. "Hmm," he muttered to himself and nodded relentlessly as he often did, "Dark Marks. And a few weapons, just in case." He winked. "Your normal weapons are in the other room. Good. Good. Ah- Good luck."

Derek found herself clenching his jaw to keep the laughter from spilling out. He had always known that Muggles were stupid, but judging by the Muggle-scholar, their absurdity was contagious. He, a Muggle-born like Lily, had his own set of frustrations with the Muggle community and their lack of acceptance, their bigotry, their arrogance. He had long ago decided that they were to be watched over like small children- no harm was to become of them and none was to be done by them. Suddenly, Derek sighed in realization. "They didn't give us a location." He stalked off to get some coordinates while Lily dragged her feet to the enormous closet used for undercover work.

Lily groaned upon entrance. Working anonymously was loads of excitement, but could she just dress as herself for once? She plucked a gown off the rack and went to a side room to try it on. It was to anybody else a gorgeous midnight blue dress with short sleeves and a floor length skirt, so she could both show off her Dark Mark and hide her weapons. To Lily, however, it was constricting and annoying. She touched the fabric when she was strapped inside the dress.

All right, fine. It looked lovely. But did it have to be so uncomfortable? Some hasty wand work later, and her eyes were blue, her hair black and coiled up behind her head. Thoughtlessly, she strapped her gun to her thigh, and laid her wand in next to it in the holster. She was searching the wall for a pair of shoes when Derek returned, almost unrecognizable.

His hair, ordinarily brown, was now a silvery blonde. His eyes, usually a warm chestnut, startlingly green. He was wearing expensive looking dress robes of the darkest blue. Coincidence. He immediately found the shoes that she was searching for and handed them to her. She shot him a teasing looks for his feminine skills, but slipped into the heels without complaint.

As they strode out of the building to where they could Apparate, they thought about their mission. This time, the gathering was to be held at an ancient Victorian era mansion that belonged to one of the more important Death Eaters, if not Voldemort himself. Without giving themselves the opportunity to hesitate, Derek took Lily's arm and they Apparated.

A short walk through a beautiful garden later, and they stepped up to the large rosewood door. The door snapped open and a squat, balding man appeared in the crack. "you here for the…" he trailed off. Lily and Derek showed their left arms and the stout man bowed them inside.

She wandered around the huge area where most of the Death Eaters were gathered, and kept to herself, while really listening to wizards' conversations. One topic in particular came up again and again. It was something about the Louvre. She listened, but a conversation on the other side of the room captured her attention with its secrecy.

"… we'll want to move it soon." A gruff voice instructed.

The other man nodded, "We'll take it back here. We can run the tests on it."

"They'll be watching." The first man reminded him.

"Don't worry about it… What are you doing?" the second man had spotted Lily, who was discreetly examining a painting near them.

Lily smiled, "Just admiring this painting. It's incredible." She said politely.

"Thank you." A new man said. Lily's heart skipped a beat at the eerily familiar voice.

Dressed in black with a commanding presence that silenced the room, it was Lord Voldemort.

"It's beautiful," Lily praised, "my lord." She dropped her head courteously. The others in the room were practically crouched on the ground in veneration for their lord and master.

Voldemorts brown eyes were lit favorably. " Clearly, you have an eye for art. Tell me, what is your name?" he asked.

"Amber Brown." Lily lied.

"Amber…" Voldemort repeated, "I do not remember you." Lily looked bravely into his eyes. The man shrugged. "But I have had much on my mind." It was clear that he was in a good mood, and that Lilys admirations had not gone to waste.

Derek walked up behind her, "There you are," he said happily.

"Here I am," Lily chirped.

Derek dropped his head in his 'masters' presence. "It is an honor, Master." He said with an almost groveling tone in his voice.

Lord Voldemort raised his head a fraction. He had enjoyed 'Amber', who had acknowledged his power but also spoken to him as a person. He had begun to loose his humanity in a very perceptible way and as much as he reveled in his newfound power, he found his state of being unsettlingly blank. "I'll leave you two alone," he growled, dismissing them.

As they hurried away from the freshly annoyed master and towards the exit, Derek turned to Lily, "I told you to be safe," he muttered, remembering the promise they made to each other upon joining British Intelligence.

"I was," Lily said, pretending to show him the painting, "Did you learn anything?"

"This painting is amazing, _darling_." Derek said a touch louder than necessary. Then, in hushed tones, "I learned enough. The painting we protected over the summer is the one everyone is concerned with. I don't know why yet, but they're going to take it."

"Well then, we'll need to stop them, won't we?" She muttered faintly.

The two of them stepped out of the house and into the cold night air. They walked a couple hundred paces to be sure not to be seen Apparating, then disappeared, and reappeared at British Intelligence Headquarters.

After an extensive debriefing, the two were dismissed to their schools for the night. They said goodbye, then Apparated home.

When Lily entered the school, she used every secret passageway that she could, just to make the trip a short one. If she was caught after hours or out-of-bounds, she could now say that she was patrolling the halls as her head girl duties required.

Unfortunately, all four Marauders were sitting around the coffee table of the Head's Tower, trying to help Peter with his homework.

"Oh, um hello," she muttered, rushing up the stairs.

She heard Remus' gentle voice instructing Peter to "try it _this _way" before a small explosion erupted and Lily snapped her door shut.

After what seemed like a very short amount of time in which Lily locked her weapon in a trunk underneath her desk, she heard a soft knock at her door. There stood James, looking pathetic.

"Are you all right?" James asked. "You seem a little off."

Lily wanted to laugh. He would seem 'a little off', too, if he had just been where she had! "I'm just fine. Thanks for asking."

James smiled as if he understood her well enough to know when she lied. "Family problems?"

The girl grimaced. She hadn't seen anybody from her family since fifth year. She had avoided her hometown like the plague and therefore wasn't often reminded that her parents were dead and her sister hated her.

"Um… yeah," she said, knowing that nobody would pry into her personal familiar quarrels.

"What happened?" James asked. Dammit. He was pretty rude.

Lily almost let a piece of herself show, thinking about that blustery night. She shut down just as quickly. "I'm pretty tired," she said. This time, he took the hint and excused himself.

Lily shook her head incredulously, reminded of exactly why she and James fought so much. He was rude and arrogant and quite the toe rag. For a moment, her thoughts drifted to her old friend, Severus, whom she had at one time sworn to protect until her last fighting breath. She forced the thoughts from her mind as quickly as they had come. He had ended that friendship a long time ago.

She slept uneasily, nightmares of her parents murder flooding her mind.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Chapter 3**

1Disclaimer: Nothing that you recognize belongs to me

"_Get out of my way!" Voldemort hissed at Lily's father, Kevin._

_Kevin just stared with furious hatred shooting from his eyes._

"_Very well." Voldemort said. "Avada Kedavra!" Green light flooded the room, and Lily's father dropped to the ground, dead. "On to you," Voldemort growled._

"_Leave! Please, just leave!" Lily's mother begged._

"_Hmm…." Voldemort teased, "No."_

"_Please! Just leave us alone!" She pleaded, tears flooding her eyes. Lily and Petunia stared through the posts of the railing to the upstairs where they should have been sleeping, too terrified to move away._

"_Avada Kedavra!" Voldemort exclaimed. More green lights, then a thump as their mother hit the floor. Voldemort looked straight at the two girls, left alone in this world. "Mud-blood… you're next." He hissed directly at Lily. Then everything went red and black. _

"No!" Lily screamed, and sat bolt upright in her bed. Her door flew open.

"Lily! What's wrong?" James asked, having just appeared in the doorway.

Lily blinked a few times, a lump gathering in her throat, "Um…" she muttered, "Nothing…" But James knew that it wasn't true. He walked over and sat down next to her, earning a glare from Damien.

James didn't say anything for the next half hour. He just held her and waited for her to be ok. Finally, James moved to kiss her cheek. Inexplicably, she didn't stop him. "Are you going to be all right?" he asked uncertainly.

Lily took a breath, "I think so," she whispered. Damien flew to her headboard. "Actually… no." James looked at her with concern in his eyes. "I'm… I'm supposed to go talk to the headmaster." She muttered, suddenly feeling very unsafe. The only thing she had found that could dissipate the sheer panic that remembering her parents brought to her was to give herself a mission. Schoolwork, housework, or work-work, it was the best way to keep her mind from settling on those emotionless words that inspired her to join British Intelligence.

"I'll go with you," James assured her.

"Um…." Lily couldn't through her bleary mind think of a reason why he couldn't. Lily nodded and headed for the stairs. James caught up to her on her way out the door and took her arm. When he saw it, he wished that he hadn't.

"Lily…" he whispered.

"It's not what you think," Lily insisted. On Lily's arm, on _his _Lily's arm was a Dark Mark.

James glared at it, "Then what the hell is it?" he growled. James shoved her arm away from him and stormed into his room. Lily fought her need to go after him and explain. It was better he thought she was a Death Eater than know what really happened.

'_I'm protecting him… I'm protecting him… I'M PROTECTING HIM'_ she thought to herself again and again until her message outweighed her devastation.

Lily bit back her tears and made her way to Dumbledore's office. She clenched her eyes shut and forced her emotions away. Who cares what James thought? He didn't understand anything! She wished she could tell him everything…

She made her way to the gargoyle and stared it down furiously. "What are we going to do?" she asked herself. "Um… Lily Evans?" Miraculously, the gargoyle moved, revealing a set of stairs to the headmaster's office which her climbed hastily. Lily knocked nervously on the door and a tired voice begged their entrance.

"Professor," Lily said in greeting. "I need to talk to you."

"Oh, Miss Evans. About what?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

Lily hesitated, "I um… I work for… um…" she paused, " I need to be able to Apparate without walking to Hogsmead."

The old man nodded. "I understand." he asked. "There are two doors in the bedroom that was intended for you, and only one in the Head boy's room." Dumbledore said hastily, "One of them is Apparation-friendly. You can change your identity from there as well. That should make your duties a little bit less complicated."

"Thank you," Lily said uncertainly, "You… how?"

"Obviously, I knew that you would need it." Dumbledore said simply.

"Oh… Thank you." Lily said again.

"I understand. I also understand your need for secrecy." He said understandably. Lily nodded, "This conversation never happened." Lily nodded again, and left the room. He really was a crazy old man sometimes. Still, he must be awfully powerful to make an exception to the protective curses reaching across Hogwarts grounds, and she appreciated the amount of knowledge and magic that must have gone into that.

Lily found herself taking the longest route possible back to Gryffindor Tower so that she didn't have to see James. She made certain that he would have gone to bed or gone out marauding by the time she got there.

When she made it back to the heads common room, she found James sitting in front of the fireplace with a mirror in his hand. '_Arrogant prat.' _She thought fondly. 

Biting back the flood of emotion that she couldn't seem to control, she stepped closer. Her need to explain and her need to keep secrets pulled her in opposite directions so hard that she thought she might be yanked in half. Looking closer at the mirror, she found that it wasn't a mirror at all- it was not his own reflection was not staring back at him. It was Sirius'.

"Oh, hi," James said to Lily uncomfortably.

"Hi, James, Sirius," Lily said amiably, and took a seat next to James on the couch.

"Hey, Lils," Sirius said calmly, "Bye, Lils."

"Bye," James said, Lily waved, then Sirius' reflection blinked out of the mirror. "Did you talk to Dumbledore?" he asked. She didn't respond. "You look much better," James commented, unable to sustain the quiet.

"Yeah," Lily repeated.

"So…" James began casually, "You're a Death Eater…" He knew when the words escaped his lips that they should never have been uttered.

Lily flared, whirling to her feet. "No." she was furious. "You don't understand anything!"

"Ok… well… What happened?" he asked.

Lily pursed her lips. "Nothing. Just a stupid nightmare."

"Oh yeah?" James challenged.

"Yes." Lily

"About what?" he asked curiously. He swiftly changed tactics to throw her off guard.

It worked.

"Um… Don't worry about it," Lily said hastily. She thought about giving him a half truth- telling him the part of the story involving her parents. But she didn't want anybody knowing that part of the story, either. She didn't need the sympathy. She'd hid it for two years, and she'd be absolutely fine for another one. After graduation- and providing that none of them became Death Eaters- she'd never see anybody from Hogwarts ever again.

"Come on." James prompted after an inconsiderately short pause.

"It's nothing to worry about." Lily argued, becoming passionate again.

"But I want to know," James said quickly. Lily stood and strode angrily up to her room.

James rolled his eyes and looked into the mirror again. "Sirius Black."

Sirius' face appeared in the mirror; "What?" he snapped, "Aren't you snogging by now?"

"Yes." James said sarcastically. "It went so well and I just had to tell you about it!"

"Ugh!" Sirius groaned in disappointment.

"She won't tell me anything!" James cried in frustration.

"Maybe we should leave this one alone." Sirius said dejectedly.

"I still don't like that Dark Mark." James complained.

"Well… maybe there's an explanation," Sirius said, for once the cognitive Marauder. He knew how snake-like Slytherins could be. After all, he'd never met a decent wizard before Hogwarts.

"I'm going to bed." James said, too tired to rationally consider all of the possibilities. He slipped the mirror into his pocket and headed up the stairs.

As he passed Lily's room, he saw her sitting on her bed, with a tiny brown owl on the windowsill. "Hey… sorry," he said hastily.

Lily looked up in alarm, "Um… yeah," she said uneasily, "I'm going to bed." She stood and closed the door, effectively shutting James out of her room; then she entered the door to the left of the bathroom, which was slightly ajar. There, she Apparated to Head Quarters and strode to the wizards division where Emerson and Derek waited.

"Evans!" Emerson said brightly, "That had to be five minutes!"

Lily said, "Yeah. I can Apparate from school now."

"Excellent," Emerson said happily. "You're going to the Louvre again."

"What are we looking for?" Lily asked calmly.

"Check out the Egypt exhibit." Emerson said brightly. "The two of you discovered something wonderful the other night!"

"Just your wands." Emerson instructed. "You're dismissed." Emerson said steadily. The pair of teen wizards nodded and Apparated to the Louvre.

They entered, and immediately a frightened man crept out from the shadows. "Are you from Britain?" he asked anxiously. He was clearly expecting some protection, though he was probably unaware of the power he had received.

"Yep. Shout if you need us," Derek said calmly.

The guard nodded and the two wizards walked for the Egypt display. This exhibit took up a large portion of the main floor. They walked all around it, examining ancient pharos and artifacts. The hieroglyphics were impressive, but neither could translate them.

Lily did find a strange artifact that was covered in hieroglyphics; it was a golden tube maybe a foot long. She frowned, "I don't think we should touch anything." She admitted.

Derek agreed and they proceeded to take magical photographs that would help Emerson to understand without travelling. "So what's wrong?" he asked, keeping his voice casual though his concern was strangling.

"James." Lily answered shortly. When Derek looked at her expectantly, she added "…and the nightmare again…" She looked down at her feet, so embarrassed to have fears. She was an agent, dammit! She was supposed to be suspicious of everything, yet fear nothing. And, in fact, Voldemort didn't scare her. Not really, anyways. She could interact with him as she had the other night without feeling that stab of fear that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up by thinking about that night. Thinking about that night, though, kept her frozen in a state of panic and unfamiliarity.

Derek grimaced. That nightmare had been explained to him years ago and it disturbed him with it's chilling accuracy to what really happened. He hadn't been there, of course, but the account had been so detailed that he may as well have been. The year afterwards, he suggested that they join the good fight and end the bastard. In the beginning, he thought it would help Lily with her emotions about the situation, but she had turned the other way and was now almost too calculated. He would still be her best friend until they died (probably together- probably fighting), but things had changed shortly after they joined BI. She had changed.

They shared a deep look of understanding, then Lily pursed her lips- visually through thinking about her life for a long time. "Come on" she said, and they continued.

When they were finished, Lily thought of the guard. "He looked a little jumpy," she mused.

"A little?" Derek said sarcastically. "Come on then… we'll tell him we examined the perimeter or something." Lily grinned and followed him back to the front of the museum and spotted the guard sitting nervously at a large desk.

"You're perfectly fine. We'll come back if there's any reason to be concerned," Lily said confidently.

The guard babbled how thankful he was that they'd come. He had a wife and six kids at home. He wasn't sure what he was protecting, but he most certainly knew that the risks associated with his unit were greater than those of the rest of the museum.

Derek and Lily had just turned to leave the building when a deafening crack and a blast of light signaled that their informant was accurate, and the Death Eaters had arrived.

"_Avada Kedavra_!" a familiar flash of green light shot through the room.

Lily whipped her wand out and shot a stunner at the man who had just killed the ignorant guard. There were flashes and beams of light going off everywhere from an astonishing number of missed curses. Didn't Death Eaters have to undergo any kind of training? Lily and Derek were dreadfully outnumbered, but had accuracy on their side-

Derek was struck with a stunner, and he hit the ground with a sickening thump. Lily shot another few quick curses at the man who took out her best friend. He laughed coldly, and hit her with a _Cruciatus_.

Lily gasped at the fresh pain, but the curse wasn't as strong as it should have been for a full-grown wizard in control of his magic. She lifted her wand to fire back when one of his friends decided that the individual battle had gone on long enough. He jumped in and hit Lily with a spell she couldn't identify. At the same time, another man hit her with a stunner. That one got her.

Lily caught a fleeting glimpse of a whirling room, then everything went black.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Chapter 4**

1Disclaimer- Nothing that you recognize belongs to me

Lilys eyes opened slowly. She was in a dingy gray stone room. The room was empty except for her and the chair she was magically tied to. The ropes holding her to it cut into her arms. She couldn't reach her wand, and she couldn't Apparate from the chair. Lily whipped her head around, looking for the person who'd dragged her there.

She didn't see them anywhere. "What do you want?" she asked coldly, hoping he would take the bait.

A stout, balding man looked at her in disgust from a dimly lit corner. "Mud-blood." He spat. "Why were you at that museum?"

Lily smiled; "You first?" she asked almost calmly. She knew that the smartest thing to do was to stall. Someone would be along shortly to help her… wouldn't they?

The man sneered and circled her like a vulture.

"Answer the question!" he barked.

"What question?" Lily asked sarcastically.

"Why were you at the museum?" he asked with danger glinting in his ugly gray eyes. Lily stayed silent, and his expression hardened.

"Last warning," he warned.

"I'm curious." Lily said calmly. The man smiled, delighted at her obstinacy. He tugged a wheeled tray from the corner of the room into her line of vision and began examining the instruments on top. Several knives, some dental tools and…. Her wand! Lily focused on her wand, willing it to leap into her hand. Of course, it did not.

"You disappoint me," he drawled, playing with the silver instrument. He seemed unaware of the power lying atop his tray.

"I hear that life is full of disappointment," Lily taunted. The man sneered again and held the tip of the dagger to her throat. Lily's heartbeat sped up.

"I'll ask you once more time. Who sent you there? What do they know about the Dark Lord?" he asked.

"I don't think you asked me that," Lily said.

The man made a face, "The instant you tell me, I'll stop." He said darkly. He tenderly picked up a long dagger and started towards her.

Lily's heart raced. She concentrated all of her focus on the wand on the tray- '_accio…accio… ACCIO' _The wand on the table shot into Lily's hands, bound behind her back. She had performed wandless magic! She didn't have time to congratulate herself. She had to get out of there! In moments, she freed herself and turned on the man. And if she could get a little information out of him first, all of this would have served a purpose.

She sneered. "It appears, sir, that the tables have turned."

The man didn't look afraid. That was NOT a good sign. "Actually, Madame… nothing has changed at all." He gestured towards the door and it busted open. A flood of people in black robes raced into the room. Lily turned on all of them like a feral cat, but- wait…

"Derek?" Lily couldn't believe it. The last time she had seen him, he was unconscious in France!

Derek led the group to the stout Death Eater. He shot a series of restraining curses at the man. Derek glared at him like he would love to do much worse. After the man was escorted out of the room, Derek rushed to Lily.

"Come on." He instructed. Before Lily had a chance to speak, he turned and Apparated the two of them away.

They got back to the wizard division of BI to find an irate employer pacing the hall. "What the hell happened?" Emerson barked. Two of his agents disappear after working a simple task and there's nothing he could do about it? He had been furious! Volatile! …Nervous.

Derek just looked at the ground. His vow to always look out for his best friend had been broken. He felt absolutely rotten.

Fortunately, Lily was outwardly just as devoid of emotion as she was much of the time. She got him up to speed and informed him that there was a Death Eater in their custody. That really got Emerson going.

"What in the hell were you thinking bringing him here?" he snapped. "He needs to be with…your kind!"

Lily pursed her lips. "Sir, that was not anybody's decision to make but your own."

Emerson was purple with anger. "Well… I- you- are-" he stomped off without another sound.

Lily pulled out a pen to fill out a couple forms for curses used on the job. She wondered to herself if muggle police officers had to do similar paperwork for bullets fired.

Derek settled on the edge of a desk, never taking his eyes off the ground. "I'm sorry…" he whispered.

"For what?" she asked, filling out paperwork that had become familiar to her. She glanced up at him. _'Oh Jesus, he's gonna cry… what do I do?' _"It's ok," she said, stepping closer to him. "Yaknow… it's a risky job." She was failing.

Derek half smiled. "Some girls cry when they get upset."

She smiled back. '_It's working?' _"Who's upset?" she put her arms around him. "I'm fine, you're fine. Just… what happened?"

Derek yanked her closer. "Well… I was out for a few minutes before some wizards got there to help clean up." He closed his eyes. "But when they woke me up, everyone from the attack was gone… you were gone…" Lily nodded, remembering her captor's hateful stare. "We had no idea where you'd gone. We searched for you. It seemed hopeless. Then one team found a vacant office building near the Louvre. They went in to investigate, heard someone, and called me to get there." He sighed, his head resting on top of hers. "I guess you were there for the rest."

"They didn't know who I was. They didn't know why I was there." She added. That was a huge positive.

"Who cares?" he snapped, moving her away from him. "You were almost killed! Do you have any idea what that would have done to me?"

She looked at him, hurt for once. Why had he shoved her away? "Yes." She answered shortly. "I've got to get to class." She snapped, storming away from him. He knew her better than to go after her.

Not a terribly long time later, Lily was in her room trying to think of a way to cover up the unsightly dark circles that had formed under her eyes in fifth year and had never really gone away. They were especially prominent this morning. _'Some people sleep at night'_ she thought to herself. Damien, her owl, hooted in agreement from her windowsill.

Well, at least she could know for certain that nobody would ever guess where she had been or why she looked like she hadn't slept a full night in months. She huffed an irritated sigh, admitting defeat. She would never be beautiful like some other girls at Hogwarts. She swept out of the room and headed for transfiguration.

"Good morning, class. We are going to review what we've already learned with matches into needles. Have fun," Professor McGonagall said pleasantly. Lily turned her match into a needle with a hasty swish of her wand, then settled her head into her palm to think about what had happened the night before. Adrenaline was still pumping through her. '_Most people would get to take the day off if they had gotten captured' _she thought resentfully.

"Hey, Lily," James sang obnoxiously.

Lily laughed, covering up her exhaustion out of instinct. "Hi, James,"

James' eyes lit up; she was going to be nice to him?

'_I'm being nice to him?' _she thought.

"Join us…" Sirius said in a deadly whisper.

She snorted, "Ok." She needed to stop thinking for just a few minutes.

While Sirius entertained himself by making his needle break dance, Lily gathered her things and walked over to the Marauders table.

"Hello," Remus said amiably. Lily smiled in his direction, then turned to her needle. It wasn't very shiny. Ever the perfectionist, she called the professor over.

"Yes, Miss Evans?" McGonagall answered. She really liked this girl. She was so smart.

Lily frowned slightly. She was about to sound like a major nerd. "My needle isn't good enough. Can I try again?" she asked.

"Certainly," McGonagall said. She handed her a box of matches, then left to take care of some Slytherins who were lighting their papers on fire with their matches.

"Lame," Sirius muttered.

Lily ignored him and concentrated on the match. She was turning it into a needle. She could picture the needle in her mind. She held her wand up to the match, but didn't move it. Didn't say a word. She concentrated on the needle in her mind. It was razor sharp. As sharp as that blade last night.

She prodded the air around the match and it sprang into the air. Lily didn't jump; she was too accustomed to the unexpected. She continued staring at it almost mutinously. She could see the needle in her mind so well. She didn't move. Didn't say a word. Suddenly, there was an almost blinding shiny needle. Lily blinked, and it clattered to the table.

"Woah," Sirius whispered. Lily grinned, and picked it up. She beamed at it, incredibly proud of herself. She looked over at the Marauders, then around the room. The whole class was staring at her.

"Uh… Sorry. Wanted to try a theory," She explained half-heartedly.

McGonagall swept up to her, "That was astounding, Miss Evans. Tell me, who have you been reading?" she asked excitedly.

"Um… sorry?" Lily asked uncertainly.

"You must have read years ahead to be able to do that!" the Professor gushed.

Lily frowned, "I guess… I read the right book," she lied.

Sirius made a series of jabbing motions with his wand, but, of course, nothing happened. "Sirius? You're going to hurt yourself," she muttered.

"Then how'd _you_ do it?" Sirius cried, "You're not even a Marauder!" Lily shrugged and stared down at her needle. She had no idea. James admired her openly, wondering what she'd done.

"I don't know," Lily said honestly, "I was just… trying to make it better,"

"You did," Remus praised. Lily shrugged. It wasn't that big of a deal, Remus was a werewolf, for heavens sake, and nobody fussed over that. Why should they care that she made a stupid needle?

Suddenly, Lily was uncomfortable sitting there with the Marauders. She turned the needle in to McGonagall and walked out o fclass for a quick nap between classes.

Lily rushed through the rest of her classes, eager to get back to her room and try out that new technique on her weapons.

Yes, she ate lunch; mostly to make James happy, but she couldn't bring herself to force down something for dinner. She was too excited. At last, the day was over. She rushed up to her room and dumped her bag next to her trunk. It was Friday!

Lily motioned with her wand and locked her bedroom door, then dug in her trunk and pulled out her weapons. She thought that maybe transfiguration would be easier than actually conjuring anything, so she pulled out a quill too.

She yanked off her robes so that she was only wearing a pair of jeans and a tank top, then sat down on her bed with her weapons case on her right. She pointed her wand at the quill and imagined the dagger that she wanted. It was sleek and shiny and sharp as anything, and it glinted in the light, and could chop anything apart and… There, she could see it in her mind. She prodded the air around the quill, and it rose into the air.

She could see it so clearly. She imagined the quill morphing into it. She pushed her wand forward, and in a blinding flash of light, a new silver dagger was hanging in the air. Lily smiled to herself and pulled it close to her. She examined it from all angles. It was very sharp and very shiny, and fit perfectly in her left hand. In fact, it was quite beautiful. She was admiring her work when suddenly, her closet door burst open and Derek bounded out.

"Derek!" Lily gasped, "You gave me a heart-attack!" Her best friend beamed, "What do you want?" she asked warily.

The boy frowned when he saw what she was doing, "Why are you playing with daggers. You'd think that all that yesterday would teach you not to do that!"

Lily laughed, glad that they were going to pretend they hadn't fought. "That would be what a sane person would take away from that experience. What do you want?" she repeated.

"Well…" Derek said nervously, "You're an Animagus… right?"

"Yep," Lily said cheerfully. She was proud of herself for that, too. It had taken years of research and practice, but she wanted to be out there with Remus some day. She would have done anything to help him in any way she could.

He rose and looked her in the eye, "I think I need some help," he muttered, embarrassed.

"With what?" Lily asked stupidly.

"I've got it mostly figured out, but I can't find the last step!" Derek cried frustrated-ly, "It isn't anywhere! The book I was using just… stopped."

"I think I should introduce you to my friend." Lily said cheerfully. She hopped up and made for the door. "I can't help you with that, but I CAN help you with something else."

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"It's fantastic!" Lily answered. She led him to the Room of Requirement, and entered excitedly.

"Woah! Where'd that door come from?" Derek asked stupidly.

Lily sighed. Was Durmstrang so dull that he'd _never_ seen a door appear out of nowhere? She walked over to a tall pedestal in the middle of the room and lifted a small vial full of mysterious green liquid that was sitting on it.

"Bottoms up," she said cheerfully and uncorked it for him.

Derek eyed it warily, "What is that?" he asked.

"A potion," Lily said untroubled. Derek looked nervous, but had an underlying trust in his best friend. He took the vial and dumped it into his mouth. He swallowed uneasily. He didn't feel any different.

"What happened?" he asked uncertainly.

Lily laughed. For once, a real laugh- not the one she used for everybody else. "Do you think I'd give you anything dangerous?" He made a face the implied he might. "We need a night off. So I am forcing us to have one!" He still looked confused. If there was anything she could change about him, she would have made him a little more clever. "It's like a reviving potion."

"Oh!" Derek said happily. Now that she said that, he realized that he felt great! "Why don't you use it all the time?"

"Oh, yaknow…" Lily said, slightly annoyed. "giddiness, lack of forethought… death. Same reasons I don't date James."

Derek beamed. "James? YOU said James!" They laughed together over ridiculous things for a good portion of the night.

"It is late." Lily said finally. "You need to go home."

"Yea, all right." Derek agreed. She led the way to Gryffindor tower, showing him this corridor or that painting that had something remarkable about it.

They entered the heads common room, and started up for Lilys room so that Derek could Apparate out when they heard a dry cough behind them. Immediately, the effects of the enjoyable night were broken. Both agents froze for half of a millisecond, then on instinct, they whipped around with their wands drawn.

" Lily!" James exclaimed. Lily sighed and lowered her wand, "What the hell?"

"Sorry, James. I Thought you were somebody else," She noticed that her friend hadn't lowered his wand. "Derek," she whispered. He dropped his arm, but was still visibly on his guard.

"Who's this?" James asked accusatorily, then walked over to them to get a better look at the new kid.

"Derek Hamilton." he answered for himself. "If you don't mind." He pulled Lily up the stairs behind him.

The instant they reached her room and closed the door, both let out a large breath. "That was stupid." Derek sighed.

"Yeah," Lily agreed. "I'll see you when they owl us. Bye," She leaned up and kissed his cheek, then he entered her closet door and Apparated away.

Lily hastily threw her box of silver tools into her trunk and looked over at Damien. The owl hooted happily. "Have you found something to eat?' Lily asked nervously. The owl hooted again, "Good." She went over and petted his head. He hooted again, looking at the floor.

She looked at her floor hesitantly, and waved her wand at the bones laying scattered across it, making them disappear. "This isn't your nest. It's my room," she informed him amiably. He flew over and landed on her left shoulder, then the two of them left her room for the kitchens.

James was still downstairs.

"Sorry" Lily said politely.

"What in the hell was that all about?" he snapped.

Lily grinned, "That was my best friend."

"Okay… Where'd he go?" James asked nervously. Was that boy still in her room?

"Far away." she looked out at the sky, "What a gorgeous full moon," she said, hoping that he'd take the hint and go away to help Remus.

"Shoot." James whispered, "I've got to go." Then he rushed out of the room and left Lily in peace.

"Thought so," she muttered, "How could he forget Remus like that…" she shook her head, and walked back up to her room. Suddenly, her stomach was unsettled.

"Would you go keep an eye on them? Find me if they're in trouble," the owl hooted and flew out the window. Lily sighed and fell back into her bed.

Bed. At a normal hour!

She curled up into a ball and fell asleep with dreams of a peaceful age. Wizards stopping to help each other on the street, Muggles not jealous of their wizard siblings. Nobody dying… It was beautiful, but it was not reality. And, actually, it was boring. She needed adventure in her life! Everything was so tedious without anything threatening her life.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Chapter 5**

Disclaimer- Nothing that you recognize is mine

"And that's why you should never trust a chocolate selling gnome!" James finished his story with a flourish, pleased as always to be the center of attention. The group laughed merrily- Sirius (who was trying to impress the blonde sitting in a booth by them at the Three Broomsticks) chugged down his soda.

Sirius clapped James on the back. "Now tell her about our trip to Egypt last summer!"

James grinned, happy to oblige. Lily discretely focused her attention. '_Egypt? This can't be coincidence.' _She thought.

James, Sirius, Remus, Peter and Lily were arranged around a table at the most popular wizard bar/café in Hogsmeade. The boys were thrilled that Lily had decided to join them. They'd spent the last several hours regaling her with their best stories (most of them horrendously embellished).

James glanced mysteriously around the table, then began his most dramatic tale. "About three weeks into summer break last year, Sirius and I were through sitting around the manor and decided to go on a bit of an adventure."

Lily mentally noted that James actually lived in a manor. These bits of background information were beginning to build a much different person than the one she'd originally thought he was. Even if he was an arrogant turd, it wasn't entirely his fault. He'd spent his entire life being told that he was better than everybody else. He'd grown up with house elves and his parent's business associates telling him that if he ever needed a job, all he had to do was ask. Lily half-way wished that her parents had been able to give her those kinds of connections, but then again everything she had was earned through blood and sweat and that had to mean something. As soon as that thought formulated, she found herself resenting James' life. She found herself withdrawing from the situation. _'Dammit Lily- who the hell cares if he is a jerk? Listen!' _

James hadn't noticed Lily's lapse in concentration and was in the middle of the story when she checked back in. "-and that meant we needed Remus. He, of course, cracked the machine in about a second. I don't know how he managed-"

Lily must have looked rather confused because Remus interjected bashfully, "It was just an ATM. He makes it sound like I broke into a bank vault."

James skipped over that interruption. "It was incredible. Anyways- we got these tickets like for the train but they were for this incredible Muggle contraption- an aero-plane. It's a bus that goes into the air! Without ANY magic!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "An airplane? James- I'm Muggle born."

"It's _incredible_" James said again, officially getting on Lily's nerves. "So when we got into our seats on the aero-plane we overheard this wicked shifty conversation about stealing something from a pyramid! Some gold tube-y thing."

'_No… Oh no…' _Lily realized that her previous hunch had been correct- the Marauders had stumbled onto her artifact. "All right," Lily said slowly, pretending not to understand. "But what would a wizard want with it?" _'PLEASE be stupid- just this once?'_

Sirius looked at Lily like she was daft. "It's a _very_ valuable piece."

"Oh, of course." _'Thank god!'_ She was ready to cry with gratitude that they didn't understand the significance of the piece.

James shot Sirius a cryptic glare. "Well, we fancy ourselves to be pretty good chaps. Naturally, we had to defend the scholastic value of the artifact." Remus looked pleased that James had remembered that line from so long ago. "From there, it was a piece of cake. We struck up conversation with them about when they were heading back to London, caught their flight, and stole their luggage."

Lily took a deep sigh. They had no idea how much danger they had put themselves in. "I'm so glad that it worked itself out." She said finally. She looked down into her glass for several minutes of the Marauders fighting over who actually collected the baggage. So that's why she had been unable to intercept the artifact herself. Those tricky bastards had stolen it right from under her. They must have turned it into the authorities and that's how it ended up in the museum. Lily looked up from her soda just in time to see an ordinary looking brown owl fly in through the open door of the bar and land in front of her.

"Weird," Sirius said, examining the owl, "It doesn't have a letter."

Lily frowned. "Maybe it got lost. I know who the owl belongs to, though. I should bring it back to him." She certainly did know who the owl belonged to- British Intelligence.

"We'll walk you back to Hogwarts," Remus offered, ever the gentleman.

"Uh..." Lily didn't have a way out of that one. "Okay."

They walked up to the castle together. James tried the entire time to get Lily to loosen up again. With every sentence, Lily became more annoyed. She got back to her room and locked the door, then Apparated to British Intelligence Headquarters.

"Hi Derek," she said when she entered. "Sorry I'm kind of late."

Derek smiled. She looked disheveled- as if she'd had a row with James again. "That's ok. I don't know what they need us for but it can't be very important."

A familiar voice came from the hallway. "Actually, I _do_ need you two today." Lily and Derek whirled around to face their boss, embarrassed.

"What do you need?" Lily asked, ready for anything.

"Some problems with a werewolf at Hogwarts, for one thing," Emerson said. He directed his attention to Lily. "You need to talk to them." Emerson said shortly, "He was spotted in Hogsmead last night. A five year old girl… Lisa something, was almost was bitten. You need to take care of that now." Lily cringed. "Also, there's a Death Eater party tonight. I want you both there. Be here at five to check in and Apparate."

"Yes, sir," Lily said. Emerson walked away. "See you tonight," she said with a false cheerfulness. This conversation with Remus would not be a fun one. Then she Apparated to her school.

Lily bounded into James' room with Damien on her left shoulder a few minutes later. She walked over to his bed where he slept and sat down on the edge. "James?" she asked quietly. She stared at his face unhappily. No matter how much she enjoyed walking around Hogsmeade with him and his friends, no matter how hard he made her laugh, no matter how he made her feel, he couldn't be hers. It was too dangerous for him. Protecting him made her want to cry.

Suddenly, James sat bolt upright.

"What?" he snapped.

"James, I need to talk to you," Lily said quietly. She now sat cross-legged on his bed, waiting for him to wake up a little more.

James grinned, "About what?" he asked, hoping she was going to ask him on a date.

"Could you get all of the Marauders in here, please?" Lily asked. "It actually involves all of you."

"Sure," James said calmly. He reached over onto his nightstand and grabbed a small square mirror. "Sirius Black," he said very clearly. Blackness covered the mirror. James sighed, "OI! Wake up!" he shouted. The black mass moved around very quickly and soon a very messy looking Sirius was in the mirror, which was not so terrible a sight to see.

"Wazzup?" he asked stupidly.

"Get the guys and all of you get to my room," James ordered.

"Aye, aye, captain!" Sirius said cheerfully. Lily could hear him moving about and screaming for Remus and Peter. "All right, we're coming." he said happily.

Lily glanced at the clock next to James' bed. It was already three in the afternoon. Perhaps she should have waited to have this conversation until she had more time. "Thanks," Lily said quietly. It was too late to turn back now.

"No problem," James assured her. Almost five minutes later, Sirius, Remus and Peter trooped into James' room.

"You two finally hook up?" Sirius asked obnoxiously.

"No," James said, not bothering to get upset about his best friend's bluntness. "Lily says she needs to tell us something." They all took seats on James' bed, and stared at Lily expectantly.

Lily hesitated. She couldn't tell them about British Intelligence. "You all heard about Lisa?" she said, feigning nervousness. The boys shook their heads, "Well, she was in Hogsmead and a werewolf came upon her. She was almost bitten.," she said, trying very hard not to tell them that she knew about their secrets.

"Oh?" Remus asked, his voice a lot higher than it should have been.

"Um… yes." Lily said. "I really wish they would stay out of Hogsmead. It's not safe."

Lily sprang up and crept out of the room, knowing that they would be too upset to ask questions.

She reached her room and glanced at the time. Not a lot of time until she had to face the Death Eaters again. She was a little more wary than she normally would be, but the other night hadn't really impacted anything but her wardrobe. She had a few impressive bruises on her arms that she needed to cover. Suddenly, Derek popped out of her closet!

"Hey!" she exclaimed, hugging him cheerfully. "Long time no see!"

Derek laughed. "I wish they could give us our assignments in writing rather than us having to go in twice."

Lily shrugged. "What if the message were intercepted?" It was simpler for her. She didn't care about inconveniences to her life the way Derek did.

"Did you deliver the message?" Derek asked, changing the subject.

"About Lisa? Yeah," Lily answered. She couldn't imagine what would happen if anybody found out her secret.

While she thought, she picked out a dress to wear to the gathering. She changed quickly then she dug in her trunk and handed Derek a handgun, strapped her holster to her thigh and tucked in a muggle handgun, her favorite dagger. Her wand, a wizard weapon, was slipped into a pocket along her forearm. There was no need to conceal it. Derek stowed his wand in his pocket and carefully hid his weapon in his robes. They quickly transformed their hair and eyes to their death eater disguises.

"Can we go now?" Derek asked impatiently. Lily nodded and the two of them entered the closet and Apparated to British Intelligence Headquarters.

"Evans, Hamilton," Emerson said cheerfully.

Lily shook her head, "Brown and White," she corrected, realizing once again how stupid their false identities sounded when said at once.

"Hmm…" Emerson mused, "You've got your Dark Marks?"

"Unfortunately," Derek admitted.

"Alright, and any muggle weapons?" Emerson asked.

"Of course," Lily said obviously.

"Mmhmm," Emerson said approvingly, "And you've got to be there in ten minutes?"

Lily smiled, "Yes. Don't worry, we can Apparate to the mansion now." She said cheerfully.

A moment later, they were around the corner of the mansion. They strode up to the door and knocked. "Password?" a voice called.

Lily looked up in alarm, but Derek didn't look worried. He hissed a strange series of syllables. The door was thrown open.

"You… you speak it?" the fearful door-guard asked nervously.

"Yes." Derek answered in English. The guard bowed low and allowed them to enter.

"Wait!" the guard called after them. "I did not hear _you_ say the password," he said to Lily.

"Excuse me?" Lily asked coldly.

"Password, please." The guard demanded. Derek turned toward him and stared him in the eye. "It's not my fault, sir. I'm not allowed to let anyone in without the password,"

"Amber!" a voice behind them called. The guard fell to his knees, and Lily knew that it must have been the Dark Lord.

Lily turned slowly, "Milord," she tilted her head down, avoiding his eyes.

"Miss Brown." Voldemort said, a hint of bitterness in his voice. He had been looking forward to not being treated as inhuman as he felt.

Her eyes snapped up, "Yes, milord?" she asked.

Voldemort sneered, "I simply thought that you would like to see a painting of mine," he said shortly.

Lily nodded quickly, and knew that she should drop the 'lord' act. "I'd love to," she said gratefully.

His sneer turned slightly upwards in a tiny smile, "Then come with me," Lily nodded and followed him to the upper level of the house, leaving Derek behind with the groveling guard. He led her into a room and Lily grew wary, not sure if she could reach her wand if the need occurred. "Right here," he said, and nodded to the wall. Lilys breath caught in her throat. It was her.

"It's wonderful." She whispered, hoping that the Dark Lord would take her soundlessness for reverence. "May I ask who is the girl?" Of course, Lily knew that it was her tied to that chair with blood running out of her arm. The blood spelled out crude words on the floor. 'Mud-blood'.

Voldemorts eyes flashed, "A pawn in my game of domination." Lily managed not to wince. "She's so strong… She works for… I am unable to figure who. She would be so useful on my forces… It's a shame she's completely against the cause. If she hadn't been corrupted by the other side, she may have been useful."

He let the words sink in, and let Amber decide if she was resentful to the girl's power, but Lily was in awe. Why had the dark lord taken such an interest in both her identities?

Finally, Voldemort spoke. "She killed and insubordinate of mine a few weeks. It was rather convenient for me."

"What happened?" Lily asked. _There must be some mistake. I didn't kill anybody. _

Voldemort snarled. "Who cares?" he snapped, suddenly harsh.

"Curiosity, milord." Lily said, her head dipped to the ground.

"Well," he said, softening slightly. "if my sources are correct- and they'd better be- she used wandless magic against an attacker that I sent after her. She killed by just willing someone dead." He sounded envious. Without warning, the subject changed. "You disappeared at the last meeting," he said unhappily.

"Unavoidable," Lily said quickly, "Troubles at home."

"Oh?" Voldemort asked curiously.

"Burglary," Lily lied quickly, almost sickened with how well she could.

Voldemort sneered, "I hope that you killed him,"

"No," Lily said sadly, "He was gone before I got there," Voldemort sighed, but eventually moved on to a different painting.

"What's this?" she asked.

The Dark Lord looked happy to show off his work to someone who was genuinely interested in it, not in him. "This… This has haunted my dreams for months."

He whispered, "The Essirb Aras." He paused for a moment, "Power beyond your wildest dreams. Power…" he repeated and gazed at the golden tube that Lily recognized.

"What does it say?" she asked innocently.

"Nobody knows," Voldemort laughed, "It's been ruining me. I've sent countless followers after it, but none have returned successfully,"

"Why… if can say," Lily prodded gently.

"That same girl. She's there every night. If I only knew who she was!" Voldemort exclaimed, clearly very upset. Lily frowned, and Derek appeared by her side.

"Amber," he muttered, "Are you finished?"

"Do I need to be?" Lily asked, aware of her 'Lords' presence.

"Of course not." Derek said hastily, "But you have work soon,"

"You are free to go," Voldemort said offhand.

Lily nodded like she was considering not leaving, "Milord, I bid you good night," then she walked away with Derek, leaving the Dark Lord with a crazed look on his face, staring obsessively at the painting of the Essirb Aras.

The moment that they were out of that house, the two exchanged glances. They walked as quickly as they dared and Apparated the very moment that the house disappeared from their view.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Nothing you recognize belongs to me. By the way- I'm carrying on with the italics being Lily's thoughts.

"Wandless magic," Professor Minerva began in response to a student's question, "is most often seen amongst underage witches and wizards whose magical abilities build up for a long time before bursting out in a show of great power." She paused to look around the Transfiguration class that she taught to Gryffindors and Slytherins on Tuesday and Thursday. Her gaze settled on Lily Evans, who was sitting alone in a corner of the classroom, staring back at her with an intensity that Minerva had only seen in a young Tom Riddle. "However, some great wizards learn to harness these bursts of magic and apply them to perform specific spells without the use of a wand. Unfortunately, I am unable to give you a demonstration. Sufficient? Back to conjuring quills."

Lily thought back to the beginning of the month when she'd been captured and performed a wandless accio to bring her wand to her hand. She hadn't given that part of her adventure much thought but now her mind was full of possibilities: summoning her wand right back after being disarmed, casting spells in the precious moments it would take to grasp a wand- wandless magic could be her greatest asset. Lily looked down at her notes, her mind filled with a question she couldn't ask: _Can you kill a person with wandless magic? _Up until then, it hadn't seemed possible that she was responsible for the deaths of five death eaters that past summer, but now… _Don't be ridiculous. Magic is so tied to emotions that you would have to be in terrible danger to have another burst of power like that. _

After effectively shutting down her ideas, Lily's eyes travelled to an unconscious James who appeared to be drooling on his parchment. She smiled and slunk over to the Marauder table.

"Hello!" Sirius said loudly, effectively waking his best friend.

James started awake, his frantic eyes looking for clues of a prank. He saw Lily and hastily wiped the drool off his chin. "mm hi!"

Fortunately, Lily thought the dopey half asleep James was pretty cute. Well, except for the slime. "Hi guys. How's the conjuring coming?"

Peter stared at Remus helplessly. "Why am I even in this class?" he whined, his eyes pathetic and desperate.

"Because you can do it." Remus replied firmly. "Give it a try." _No way is Peter actually as stupid as he seems, _Lily thought to herself.

Peter said the incantation incorrectly and stabbed at the air with his wand rather than giving a gentle prod. Nobody was surprised when there was a small explosion and a puff of feathers. Sirius immediately muttered a spell that erased the traces of Peter's attempt so quickly that only those seated at the table noticed. _What an incredible friend, _Lily thought.

Remus continued trying to show Peter what did incorrectly while at the same time making him feel like he hadn't done anything wrong. It seemed to Lily that it took a lot of effort to have incredible friends.

Work was as challenging and all-consuming as ever, but the little time that she did have off seemed to be filling up with Marauders. They had begun eating meals together and sitting together in class. They went to Hogsmeade together. They instinctively sought one another out. Her opinion of the Marauders had changed drastically. They were captivating. They were extremely clever. They were full of energy. They were making Derek a little jealous.

"_I'll just assume you're busy tonight." Derek snapped at Lily as they completed their paperwork following a night of guarding the museum. _

_She looked up, surprised. "Well… yes."_

_Derek glowered down at his papers. "Have fun."_

That was last week. Lily promised they would spend time together over the weekend but she'd have to cancel her Honeydukes plans with the Marauders. She loved her best friend, but Sirius, Remus and even Peter were beginning to take a very special place in her heart right beside the place that belonged to James and she didn't want to hurt their feelings.

"So," Sirius said, tugging Remus' notes away from him and replicating them with a flick of his wand, "After Honeydukes, I was thinking we should head to the joke shop."

James nodded eagerly. "Yea- I'm out of stink bombs and we're going to need them next Thursday for the-"

James abruptly stopped as a tall shadow grew upon the table.

"For the what?" Professor McGonagall asked coldly.

Remus, who always diffused tense moments with professors, said "Nothing, Professor… It's just a little show for the first years. Off campus, of course."

Professor McGonagall shifted her eyes to Lily. "And you approve of this…_show_?"

Lily nodded, "Mister Zonko is helping us to plan it." James watched her lie without lowering her gaze, wavering in her voice, or so much as the beat of an eyelash. He was unpleasantly surprised.

"I suppose, if Miss Evans approves…" McGonagall said slowly, "But _where_ are your quills?"

Remus looked helplessly at Peter whose lack of ability had taken up all of Remus' time. Sirius pretended to read his notes. James was watching Lily, who prodded the air with her wand under the table. Suddenly, all five of them had quills in their hands. They raised them simultaneously, trying not to look startled.

"I see." Professor McGonagall said shortly. "Carry on then." She walked away hurriedly.

The Marauders looked at Lily with the same look of surprise, affection and appreciation.

Sirius beamed. "I think I may be in love!" A moment later- "Ow!" James looked down guiltily.

Lily smiled back. "You're welcome." She had even had the forethought to make Peter's quill badly- the edges were singed and it smoked at the nib. "About Zonkos, though, I'm afraid I have to cancel."

James forehead crinkled. Before he had a chance to say it was ok and they'd bring her along next time, Sirius (sensing his best friend's distress) blurted out, "Why?"

She shifted her gaze to his electric blue eyes. "I have plans." James gave the table an angry, wounded glare. "With Derek," she remedied. Unfortunately, that didn't make it any better.

"Well…" James said dejectedly, "Have fun." Lily briefly wondered why James had suddenly turned into a pouting four year old.

Suddenly, there was water streaming from Remus and Sirius' wands to put out the sizeable flame that Peter had set to the table. Professor McGonagall swept over, glaring. "That is enough. Leave my classroom and return when you can be more careful!"

Peter scurried out of the class, leaving his belongings behind. Lily felt terrible for mentally berating him- after all, the professor had just done it in real life. She grabbed his bag and hers and followed him out of the classroom, leaving the other Marauders behind.

Lily caught up to Peter in a second floor corridor. "Peter- wait!" she called. He had already disappeared behind a grand mahogany door. Lily ran to catch up with him. Once behind the door, she sincerely hoped that she'd let him scamper away.


End file.
